Secrets
by Lightningdragon4
Summary: Not much is known about Karma Akabane's personal life. And, quite frankly, he likes it that way. It's not that he doesn't trust his friends in class 3-E, it's just that... well, some things are just better off being kept secrets.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So, this is one of my first fanfics, so be gentle! I hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own assassination classroom. I wish I did though.**

CHAPTER 1

Karma grinned as he sat in the back of classroom 3E. It was Friday and some of the students were planing on getting dinner together after school. It was a nice change of pace from back when he was in the normal school, when he didn't have any friends.

Things weren't perfect of course. He was still fairly distant from the rest of the class, and even though he would trust them with his life, there were a few secrets that he didn't feel comfortable sharing. Two in particular he kept between himself and one other person. But right now, he didn't want to worry about his problems. After all, it was almost time to leave and, despite him acting fairly unaffected by Nagisa's invitation to join him, Isogai and Kayano for their afternoon, Karma was genuinely excited about spending time with his friends outside of class.

LINE BREAK!

Karma grinned happily as he walked through his front lawn. Tonight had been great.

Not only had he and his friends had a great time, talking about everything ranging from baseball to assassination to weather Nagisa looked more like a girl than Kayano. (In the end it had been Karma for yes, Nagisa and Kayano for no, and Isogai for just ending the conversation because they were disturbing the other customers) but the food had been good too.

So Karma was feeling pretty at ease when he strode into his large house.

That was his first mistake.

"Where the hell were you?" Came the bellowing voice Karma knew all to well.

 _Why is he here? He was supposed to be in Germany for another three days._

"I was out with some friends from school. I didn't mean to stay out past curfew. I'm sorry Father."

"Sorry doesn't cover it boy! Not if you don't get a proper punishment for your actions!" Karma flinched despite himself at his fathers outburst.

"Please Father, I swear it won't happen again," Karma begged, staring down at his father's shoes. At this point he knew there was no getting out of this but it wouldn't hurt to try.

"I don't fucking believe you!" He cried out lunging forwards with a punch so fast Karma didn't even have time to think about dodging before he hit the ground with his nose bleeding freely.

 _Shit, that's broken._ Karma thought stunned by the sheer force of the punch to the face. But his father wasn't done. Drawing back his leg, he kicked Karma in the chest so hard he could swear he heard a few ribs crack. Then he yanked him up by his collar with one hand before slamming Karma into the wall, causing spots to dance through his vision.

Karma coughed up some blood as tears started streaming down his face. His father just smirked a little as he hit him once more in the face, before dropping him to the ground, kicking him one more time for good measure.

"Be thankful I let you off easy this time. But don't expect any meals for the next few days. I want to make sure you learned your lesson," said Mr Akabane as his son struggled to stand up from his position on the floor. "Now what do we say for what I taught you?" He prompted, as Karma finally managed to stand somewhat upright.

Karma muttered something illegible under his breath and his father raised an eyebrow "what was that?" Karma grit his teeth and took a shaky breath before repeating

"Th-thank you F-Father" Mr Akabane smiled brightly before clapping his son on the back, right where he had been slammed against the wall. Karma made a small noise of pain before hurrying down the hallway and up the stairs to his room. There, he immediately closed and locked the door before heading to the private bathroom connected to his room.

Taking out his medical kit, Karma inspected himself in the mirror.

This was Karma's first secret. Everyone thought that his injuries were from the fights that he supposedly got into all the time. While it was true that Karma got into a few fights now and then, he certainly didn't get this beat up from them. Street fighters he could handle. They had no leverage on him. Nothing to hold him back with. His Father on the other hand was a different story entirely.

After a terrible car accident his mother fell into a coma. A coma she had stayed in ever since he was six. The only thing keeping her alive at this point was the hospital. And the only thing stopping the hospital from pulling the plug on her was his fathers money. And it had been made abundantly clear that that money could be taken away since the first time his father had broken Karma's nose.

Karma allowed a few tears to fall from his eyes as he thought of his mother. It was obvious that she was never going to wake up. She might as well be dead at this point. But Karma still couldn't bring himself to let her go. No matter how much pain it caused him, he would never let his mother die in there was something he could do to prevent it. And right now, his silence about his father's abuse was that something.

But as for the problem at hand, Karma knew there was no way he would be able to treat these wounds by himself. He contemplated for a moment just ending it right now. Thanks to his assassination classes, he knew right where to cut so that he would bleed out as quickly as possible. But he couldn't. If he died then there would be nothing holding his father back from puling the plug on his mother. And besides that, there were still a few things he had to live for.

Shoving the medical kit back in its cabinet, Karma slowly opened the window and climbed out onto the balcony before shimmying down the drain pipe into the yard below. He winced a little as the landing impacted his ribs.

Hurrying down the street, it took Karma about ten minutes to get to his destination. Walking through the front gates he came to the door.

It was Friday, meaning that the schools board meeting would still be going on. (Sometimes they lasted until one in the morning.) this meant that the person he needed to see would be alone. Taking a deep breath, Karma nocked on the door.

 **Ooh, who could it be? (I think we all know who it is.) I'm not sure when the next chapter will be coming out, because school runs my life, but I will try to get it up as soon as I can. Please review! It makes me happy. Constructive criticism is great, but no flames please. See you next chapter!**

 **Ps. If you like pokemon, check out my other fanfic, assassin's life.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! It's me again. I'm soooooo sorry it took so long to update. But since it's the end of the school year I've been really busy with the end of year play, and soccer, and the living hell that is finals. (My science final is on Monday. Wish me luck!) I couldn't believe that people actually liked my story, and thank you to all those who reviewed and favoreted! (Is favoreted a thing?) Anyways, enjoy, and don't forget to review. It makes me so happy.**

 **Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own anything about assassination classroom (except this fanfic.) If I did, Karma would probably get a lot more spotlight. Plus the characters would probably all be really depressed all the time.**

Chapter 2

Karma waited outside for what felt like hours, but was probably only a few seconds before the door was opened.

"For the last time, I don't want-Karma?" Gakushuu Asano cut himself off as he saw the boy standing at his door. They were both still in their school uniforms, but they both looked so different. Karma's head was lowered and his shoulders were hunched. He looked something like a frightened animal, waiting for the next attack.

For his part, Gakushuu looked a lot less stern and cold. He had lost his perfect posture and ever-present arrogant aura. In fact, at the moment he looked… concerned.

"Aw, you don't want me?" Karma smirked, trying to lighten the mood a little. But Gakushuu's frown just deepened as he took in Karma's battered appearance. Finally, without saying anything, he stepped aside to let the other boy enter. Karma's smirk faded as he stepped into the house that he had gotten to know surprisingly well. So well in fact, that he easily led the way to Gakushuu's clean, somewhat barren room.

Sitting down on the bed, Karma watched the student counsel president grab his well-stocked medical kit and settle across from him.

"Your father came back today?" Gakushuu kept his eyes on the task at hand as he asked. Karma didn't answer. He didn't have to. This was certainly not the first time Karma had come over unannounced. Mr. Akabane traveled often, but his schedule was unpredictable. As a result Karma would often come home late, or accidently leave his jacket on the floor. Anything could set his father off, and he didn't stand a chance.

Gakushuu was the only one who knew about Karma's whole situation. And yes, that included Koro-sensei. Karma often slept at the Asano household, the principal never checked his son's room, so it was surprisingly easy to stay hidden. Karma sometimes talked in his sleep. One night, about a week since his first day back, from suspension Karma explained everything. After all, Gakushuu is well adjusted to keeping secrets.

Every day, he pretends to despise Karma, to keep both his father happy, and Karma's secret safe. In reality though, Karma and he needed each other. It was as essential as eating.

Not necessarily physically, just like Karma could physically treat his own wounds. But mentally he wasn't strong enough to deal with that. Gakushuu kept him grounded, just as he had done since they were little.

"Did he…" Gakushuu trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence. Karma shook his head frantically. He got off easy today. At least, next to how bad it could be. Once he had shown up on Gakushuu's doorstep, barely able to stand. He had a broken arm, three cracked ribs and a broken nose. That was also the first time his father had raped him. Tonight it was just a blind rage. Nothing like that happened.

Gakushuu sighed in relief. He hated Karma's father more than anyone else in the world. And he hated how much control he had over the redhead's life. He did what he could but that wasn't much. He could bandage wounds, and hold Karma as he cried, but he couldn't stop that dead look he got in his eyes sometimes.

"Done," he said, as he finished setting Karma's nose. Karma nodded. But they both knew this was far from done. He would be back. Probably soon.

"You're tired." It wasn't a question, Gakushuu knew Karma well enough to be able to tell that much at least. Karma nodded again. He hadn't spoken since he stepped foot inside the Asano household. But that was nothing new.

Karma was always putting up this tough exterior. At school he would taunt Koro-sensei, threatening him and whatnot. When he wasn't doing that, he was acting all confident and superior. It got tiring after a while. Sure, that was a part of his personality, but it was only a small part. Only being able to express a small part of yourself was hard, especially for someone as emotionally unstable as Karma.

It came through at times. Most notable was the time when he jumped off that cliff on his second day. He truly thought he would die then. After all, even if Koro-sensei did follow him, he wouldn't have been able to save him if he was dead. And Karma honestly didn't care.

But what scared Gakushuu the most about that whole situation was that nobody in class E had even bothered to do anything about it. Not even a "Hey Karma, how are your suicidal tendencies going?"

But the point is, that Gakushuu did try to do something about it. Even if it didn't seem like much. Because even though Karma didn't talk often, when he did, Gakushuu was always there for him, no matter what.

Right now though, what Karma needed most was sleep. So Karma fell back onto the bed, followed quickly by Gakushuu, who wrapped his arms around the other boy. Closing their eyes, they fell asleep on top of the covers, with Gakushuu wrapped protectively around Karma.

 **So what do you think? I feel really awefull about what I'm doing to Karma, and to be honest, I was a little hesitant about adding the rape bit. But it just kida seemed to me like the right thing to put here. There probably won't be anything to graphic, and if there is I'll put a warning beforehand. Sorry if the whole Karma jumping off the cliff thing seemed a bit out of place, but it's just been circling in my mind for a while. It made me a little angry how karma basically attempted suicide and after Koro-sensei saved him once that was the end of it. No one was even particularly concerned. What's more, is that, while they focused a lot on Nagisa and Kayano's backstory, Karma's got supper glossed over. And since he's my favorite character, that made me want to write about my interpretation of how he became how he is in the series. Anyways, enough of my rant. Make sure to leve me a review before you go! Constructive criticism is great, but no flames please. They are just pointless and make everyone involved very angry. Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey! I'm so so so so sorry that I haven't updated in so long. I feel really bad about it. But I do have an excuse because after finals ended (I aced them all except for science!) My family left straight away for vacation. I'm actually posting this from Malta. But, Since I have spare time before bed and stuff, I decided to write out what I could and post it. But, before this chapter, I would like to make something clear. I think there was a little confusion about how/why Gakushuu knew about Koro-sensei, and while I think I explained it in the previous chapter, I might not have, or I might not have gone into as much detail as I should, sorry about that. But now I can explain. So basically Karma slept at Gakushuu's house one night and muttered about Koro-sensei in his sleep. So he asked Karma about it and he told Gakushuu. Because in my story, Karma trusts Gakushuu more than anyone else. (I'll probably go into more detail about why in future chapters.) See, when you review I can explain stuff like this! (Hint Hint) I've also decided to make this chapter from Gakushuu's P.O.V., just cause I've never done that before.**

Disclaimer: You probably know by now but I don't own assassination classroom.

Chapter 3

Gakushuu P.O.V.

By the time I woke up, Karma had already gotten out of bed and was downstairs and, judging by the amazing smell coming from downstairs, making breakfast, which was more than a little confusing frankly. Not the least because my dad should have kicked him out already since there was no way he hadn't noticed the red-head at this point.

Still rubbing my eyes from sleep I trudged down the steps to the kitchen. I probably should have moved faster, but contrary to common belief, I am not a morning person. Not at all.

When I finally made it downstairs I found Karma milling about the kitchen, with no shirt on, making pancakes. The scene was so domestic, not to mention adorable, that I just kind of stood there for a minute taking it all in. I probably would have stayed there for a little longer had Karma not spoken.

"Your dad had a last-minute business meeting and won't be back until Wednesday. He left a note," he informed me, nodding towards the counter, where there was a semi-folded piece of paper. I shuffled over and picked it up. It was hastily scribbled and brief, like it was an after-thought. It just read Business meeting abroad. Back on Wednesday. I scowled. My father hadn't even bothered with proper grammar.

I sighed and sat down at the table, still rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. But I did perk up a little when a steaming cup of rich black coffee was placed in front of me. I swear, Karma is like, the God of coffee or something. I'll take any coffee in the morning frankly, but Karma's is by far the best.

Shortly after the heavenly coffee had arrived, Karma set an enormous plate of pancakes down in front of me. I glanced up as he settled in the seat across from me with his own mountain of breakfasty goodness.

"Were this many pancakes really necessary?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as the redhead started drowning his pancakes in what must have been year-old sirup by now. Karma put down the bottle of sirup and grinned a little sheepishly.

"The recipe made slightly more than I anticipated," he informed me before turning back to his personal volcano and jabbing the top pancake with his fork and folding it over with his knife.

"Slightly more? You could literally feed an army with this. Also, that's absolutely disgusting," I commented as he actually shoved the entire pancake in his mouth. I was impressed that he didn't choke on it as he swallowed.

The morning continued like this, with us making small talk about trivial things while trying in vain to make at least a small dent in our respective breakfasts. Well, I tried in vain. Karma's was actually noticeably smaller by the time he slowed down enough to eat bites instead of entire pancakes.

I didn't mention last night. Or Karma's bastard father. Most people would probably think that I should be trying to console him or something. But I knew by now that the best thing I could do for him was to give him some semblance of normalcy. To let him know that someone loved him without having to say so, because then he might break down. Karma was far more fragile than anyone, even himself, realized.

So I didn't mention it. Even though it hurt every time Karma winced as he moved his chest. Even though, with his shirt of, I could see the hundreds of scars on his upper body. And I knew there were more under his bandages. I had helped treat most of them after all.

Line break

After breakfast was done, Karma just sort of dumped the dishes in the sink for me to clean. I didn't even bother complaining. He had made breakfast after all.

"I'm going to find a funny movie to watch," he informed me, as he walked down the hall, supposedly towards the living room. Karma always specified what kind of movie he was going to watch at any given time. It was a bit odd, but fairly useful considering how much I love for things to be planed out. Of course, Karma's movie tastes tend to change on a daily basis at most. Once, when he was spending the weekend at my house and we decided to just watch a bunch of movies. By Monday, we had seen, Alien, The Notebook, Indiana Jones, Spy, an episode of Downton abby, several episodes of I-Zombie, Sherlock Holmes, the second lord of the rings, and the star wars trilogy (Karma was adamant about the fact that the prequels were not, in fact, part of the actual star wars series.) After that, I had attempted to rein in Karma's bizarre movie marathons, but I could hardly cut the assassin of completely. Thus I limited it to two movies a day at most. ( Plus an episode of something if Karma threatened to withhold coffee. But I would often retaliate through promising to make Karma sleep in the guest bedroom. The problem with knowing each other so well is that neither of us are above blackmail.)

When I finally made it to the living room Karma had already pulled spinal tap out of my secret cache of movies. My father didn't like the idea of me watching movies since it "interfered with my studying," so I had to hide them all.

I settled down on the couch as Karma slipped the movie into the DVD player before he walked over and curled up next to me, pulling a blanket from the side of the couch and wrapped it tightly around himself. I pressed play on the remote before sliding my arm around the red head.

I always looked forward to this, which may be kind of selfish considering that it is often preceded by pain on Karma's behalf. But regardless, I can never be this comfortable with anyone else. The five virtuous could be considered my friends I suppose, but they only really know the cruel, controlling façade that I put on at school.

And this doesn't happen often either. After all, my father would be livid if he found out about my real relationship with Karma. So days like this, where I could just relax with the one person who knew me better than anyone else, were a rare pleasure that I treasured more than almost anything.

Line break

Our day went by in a similar fashion. We made grilled cheese for lunch, and while they weren't nearly as good as the pancakes we had for breakfast, they were still amazing. We ended up watching Silence of the Lambs that afternoon, which was quite possibly the worst mistake we ever made. I double-checked all the locks, and then neither of us took a shower.

The next day we actually went out. It was fairly cloudy out, and the majority of the school would probably be inside pretending it wasn't school tomorrow. Except it was school tomorrow. Luckily, Karma kept a uniform at my house, so he could sleep over again. It wasn't often we could spend so much time together, so we were making sure to savour it while we could. Tomorrow we went back to school. We would have to put our masks on again. We would have to pretend to hate each other. Just like we always did.

 **Sorry guys, this came out way more fluffy than I thought it would. I didn't actually know I could create something with this much fluff. Next chapter will return to angst and stuff though. I gave Karma a few weird quirks just cause. And I know that Karma and Gakushuu seem super ooc, but it's just cause I wanted to make it seem like they could be a different part of themselves around each other if that makes sense? They'll act a lot more like they're portrayed in the seiries around other people I promise. Hope you're all having an amazing summer. Please take the time to review, it makes me so so happy. One more thing, and I know this seems like a weird request but, if there are any fanfics you would like to recommend, I would seriously appreciate it. It doesn't have to be assassination classroom even, just a good one. I'll give you a cookie! (Also, I just finished watching the anime and even though I read the manga, I still cried a little. I'm such a wimp)**


	4. Chapter 4

I'm **baaaaaack! I'm not sure when I'm going to be able to upload since the wifi in our hotel is a little wonky, but I will as soon as I can. In other news, this I the longest chapter yet! You can thank the train ride from Rome to Florence, and the aforementioned wifi. Also, I have decided to reply directly to each comment. Just 'cause. So I'm just going to be replying to the reviews from chapter three.**

 **AngeliqueSora: Ahhhhhh! My first smut request. (Though I think it may be telling about my story that it was a request for a rape scene) I wasn't planning on having any smut, just because I'm not confident in my abilities in that area. But I might be convinced if reactions to this chapter are positive.**

 **I'm Just One Hell Of A Butler: COOKIE! Thanks for the recommendation. I'll be sure to check that one out when I get a chance. As for Karma's dad… don't worry, I haven't forgotten about him.**

 **Guest: I actually kind of love fanfics where my favourite characters get hurt. You're not a bad person. Unless I'm a bad person as well… But whatever!**

 **Abhieghail: I'm glad you get what I'm trying to do with their personalities. I was kind of nervous no one would understand.**

 **Warning: This chapter contains some newbie-written kissing and almost-smutty scenes.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own assassination classroom. Obviously.**

Chapter 4

Karma woke up alone. It really wasn't much of a surprise, after all Gakushuu had more than enough dedications at school, and he often left long before the red-head even thought about waking up, regardless of the fact that that, on weekends like the last, Karma let the other boy sleep until 11 while he made coffee and breakfast.

Karma took his time getting ready, knowing that no one else was home. Gakushuu's dad was on his business trip and his mom was god-knows where. He was already late, but he didn't much care. There was an assembly today, so he didn't care as long as he got too school with enough time to walk back with the rest of his class (since that was when most of the bullying happened and while Karma knew that his class were fully capable of defending themselves, he still hated leaving them to fend for themselves, considering that they were the closest thing he had to a loving familly next to Gakushuu.)

Karma arrived just in time to walk into the middle of a standoff between class E and – god-dammit – Asano and his four cronies. Karma hated this. Having to confront the prodigy right after waking up in his bed. He understood of course. He knew better than anyone the effect that a father could have on his son.

So, taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Karma stepped around the front of the building, speaking up as he did so. "Hey there Asano-Kun, don't you have someone else to torment, or are you unable to find anyone who's asses you don't have to kiss?" No-one else probably noticed, but Karma could see Asano's shoulders tense just the slightest bit as the red-head emerged.

Karma put on his best smirk and focused on Asano's eyebrows. He couldn't look him in the eyes. They could read each other far to well already, and looking into each others eyes would remove any boundaries between them. And they needed this disconnect. It was the reason they never called each other by their first names in public, even though Karma preferred being called Karma, and why they only called each other by their first names in private, even though everyone called Asano by his last name. It was also why they never talked about their interactions at school, even though they probably should.

Asano smirked back, staring rather intently at Karma's bandaged nose. "Ah, there you are Akabane, off skipping school like a good little delinquent?"

Karma's smirk transformed into a full fledged grin as he replied with "Well you know, we don't all have time for attending an assembly that basically consists of a bunch of entitled bastards throwing childish taunts to feel better about themselves oh-great-prodogy-sama."

Asano opened his mouth in order to reply, but was stopped by Karasuma-sensei rounding the corner.

"What are you all doing still here? You _all_ have a lot of work to do before mid-terms." Karasuma reminded them, clearly emphasizing the all to make it clear he was talking to everyone present.

Karma huffed and turned with the rest of his class, but really, he was beyond relieved that Karasuma had intervened. After everything Asano had done for him over the weekend, he hated having to treat him like that.

The entire way back to class, as they laughed and scolded and, hell, even complimented him on his confrontation with Asano, as they joked about his tendency to skip class, as none of them even commented on his slight limp and broken nose, Karma had to wonder; did anyone who considered themselves his friend, even notice he was pretending?

Class E spent the rest of the day reviewing for the midterms, and, though no one knew it, no one was working harder than Karma. He was fairly devastated after finals, and was more than prepared to regain what honour he had left.

Despite his determination however, no one really believed that the red head was doing anything different from before. This lack of confidence was solidified when they realized that Karma had forgotten his math book at home. Of course, he didn't even consider mentioning the fact that he hadn't been home since Friday afternoon, and considering the situation, he felt fully entitled to letting himself off the hook on that one. Especially since the whole reason he had brought it home on Thursday was so that he could study it.

Of course, Koro-sensei told Karma that he had to bring it in tomorrow. Which normally wouldn't be a problem, but Karma wasn't sure if his father was still home. And considering the fact that Karma hadn't been home at all over the weekend, Mr Akabane was bound to be plenty pissed if he was, in fact still there.

With that in mind, Karma made his way up the path to his house significantly slower than usual. By the time he reached the door he had at least gotten up enough nerve to twist the key in the lock and slowly open the door. Quietly as he could, Karma made his way up the stairs, knowing that, since the lights were on, his father was probably still home.

He made it all the way back down the stairs again before everything went to hell.

"Nice of you to join us again ya little brat," Karma froze. His father was clearly angry, but it was a different kind of anger. It was more controlled, more pointed than the simple blind rage that he had been in on Friday. And it was far more terrifying than anything else Karma had ever known.

When he had fought Grip, he figured he might die, hoped for it even, though he knew it was selfish, it had been the same when he had jumped off that cliff, hell, even when his father beat him, he wasn't as scared a he was in these moments.

Karma felt his father slip his hand under the hem of his shirt as the man came up behind him. "Then again, you always come beck for more don't you ya little slut," the elder purred into his son's ear.

Karma closed his eyes and felt his grip slacken as his book tumbled to the floor, clunking against the wood. There was no time to react as Karma was thrown onto the floor, just barely stoping his face from falling into it. His fathers hands slipped under his shirt again, this time dragging his nails painfully against Karma's pale skin. The red head grit his teeth as he felt his father pull his jacket and shirt to his shoulders, before yanking the boy upright on his knees and licking along his neck. Karma inhaled sharply as his arms were forced up and his shirt and jacket fell beside him.

"Please stop," Karma whispered, the only defiance he dared to show. His father only scraped a nail painfully against his nipple and pressed himself against the boy's bare back. Karma clenched his fist as he felt something hard press against his lower back, and barely held back a whimper.

Please. Stop. Anyone. Help.

Karma didn't expect anyone to help. It had never happened before after all. But then, with no warning, a shrill sound interrupted his father from where he had been busy dragging his hands down Karma's body.

"Fuck," his father muttered, standing up and picking up the phone. Karma just sat in shock wile his father conversed over the phone. Glancing up only when his father addressed him, "your teacher called. He wants you down at the hospital. It sounded important."

Karma felt bad that he was happy about being called to the hospital. Especially once he was told about the old man who was hurt. But he was just glad that he had avoided… that.

He adjusted his hastily put on shirt as he listened to his classmates argue with Koro-sensei about what happened. Quite frankly he tended to agree with the teacher's position on the matter. The students had acted foolishly and were now shirking responsibility. That being said, he had nothing to do with it, so he had just started to tune it out when he felt a familiar pain on his cheek.

The class sat there stunned at their teachers actions, but Karma remained tense even after everyone else had moved on, if only because his body was reflexively preparing itself for another strike.

He could handle being hit if he expected it, sure. After all he was no stranger to pain. But after what had happened earlier today he was already off his game. And the only person who hit him out of the blue like that was his father.

Still though, Koro-sensei hitting him shouldn't be affecting it that much. But Karma supposed that it was because school was one of the two places in the world where he felt truly safe. And now, with that one split-second action, Koro-sensei had destroyed all that.

So as the class dispersed, Karma made a bee-line for the only person he trusted wholeheartedly, not bothering to go back home for his math book. They weren't aloud to study anyways, and even if they were, it wasn't worth seeing his father again.

Gakushuu answered the door after the first knock and Karma wondered idly if he had actually been waiting by the door since he got home.

"Where the hell have you been?" Gakushuu demanded as soon as Karma closed the door behind him.

Karma grinned and opened his mouth to make a joke, but Gakushuu's glare cut him off before he even started. Karma sighed. It would be better just to tell him. But he'd be dammed if he didn't put it off for as long as possible.

"Some of my classmates accidentally hurt someone while being stupid. Koro-sensei called us all to discuss our punishment," Karma explained. Gakushuu frowned at him.

"All right, but that really shouldn't have taken that long," Gakushuu said, a suspicious edge to his voice. Karma took a deep breath, knowing that he didn't have a choice at this point.

"Well, I left my math text book at home. And Koro-sensei wanted me to bring it to study tomorrow…"

"What did he do," it wasn't even much of a question. The way Karma spoke, it was obvious that something had happened.

"He didn't get very far. Karasuma-sensei called before he could do more than take my shirt off." Gakushuu let out a ragged breath before his gaze drifted to the small bruise on Karma's cheek.

"Did he hit you?" Karma frowned at the question.

"No, not this time." Now it was Gakushuu's turn to frown.

"That bruise wasn't there yesterday," he said, gesturing towards his cheek. Karma brought his hand to the bruise and gritted his teeth as he recalled what had happened.

"When some of the students didn't take responsibility, Koro-sensei got pretty angry and…" he didn't have to finish. As Gakushuu put two and two together his hair fell over his eyes, shadowing his response beyond the slight trembling that overtook him.

Karma put on his best smile and approached the livid boy. He had to calm him down. Gakushuu despised what Mr Akabane did to his son, but he didn't interfere with the man directly, if only because it would just hurt Karma more. But Koro-sensei was fair game as far as he was concerned. Karma was nervous about what reckless things the normally rational boy would do if he let his anger simmer like that.

Karma slipped his hands on both sides of gakushuu's face and forced the prodigy to look him in the eyes. "It's fine. He didn't even hit us that hard."

"Even so, he had no right to-" Gakushuu's heated reply was cut of by Karma pressing his lips to Gakushuu's, if only to put an end to the argument.

They stayed like that, not really moving all that much, but just taking comfort in one another, until Gakushuu's shoulders relaxed and Karma pulled away lo smile at his boyfriend. Gakushuu smiled back and muttered "idiot."

Karma's smile just widened and he grabbed Gakushuu's hand to lead him upstairs.

That night, Karma dreamed about the first time he had met Asano Gakushuu.

They had both both been five at the time. Karma's mom had taken her son to the nearby playground, in the hopes that he could make some friends. Karma had always been smarter than anyone else in his class and because of this, the other kids bullied him relentlessly. So, of course, he had to get them back.

He was hanging upside-down on one of the crossbars with his eyes closed, thinking of ways to do just that when he felt something poke his forehead. At first Karma thought he had imagined it, but when he felt the same pressure again, he opened his eyes to find aa boy about his height, with strawberry blond hair and violet eyes.

Karma blinked. He had noticed the boy around the park before. There weren't too many kids with eyes like that after all.

"What are you doing?" the boy asked, tone half-curious half-accusatory. Karma blinked again trying to process that someone was actually talking to him, before his face split into a malicious grin.

"Thinking about idiots," he replied, not bothering to get down from his rather awkward position. The other boy nodded as though that made everything clearer.

"Are you an idiot?" he asked, tone entirely curious. Karma's grin widened into something a little little less dangerous.

"No. I'm Karma," he replied in a friendly manner before returning, "are you an idiot?"

The boy shook his head. "No, I'm Gakushuu. I didn't think you were an idiot, but I just had to make sure. There are way to many idiots in this world." Karma nodded in agreement, which looked a bit odd since he was still hanging upside-down.

"And then they all get angry at you just 'cause you're not an idiot! They really are illogical people," Gakushuu nodded vigorously, glad that he finally had someone who understood his view on the idiots of the world.

"But grownup idiots are even worse," he observed, and Karma readily agreed.

"They always say to try your best, but then they say 'maybe you should try reading something more your age' or 'that math seems a little complicated for you alright?' it's completely ridiculous."

"Absolutely!" Gakushuu cried enthusiastically. "Hey, do you mind if I think with you?" he asked, gesturing at the bar next to him.

"Go ahead," Karma replied and Gakushuu climbed up next to him and swung himself upside down, closing his eyes.

To anyone else it was probably a rather strange sight. To pre-schoolers hanging upside-down with their eyes closed. Only talking to each other when they had something important to say. But to the two young prodigies, it was the first day that either of them had ever truly enjoyed the company of another kid, and when they left, they made sure to meet again a few days latter.

As Karma left the park, his mother smiled down at him. "Who was that dear?" Karma smiled back.

"That was Gakushuu. He's not an idiot."

 **So…yeah nothing much to say here. Just please review. But remember, all flames will be used to burn down the flamer's house. Because I am secretly a pyro.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Guess what guys? I'M NOT DEAD! I am in fact, very much alive (and relatively healthy.) So, there are a number of reasons that this chapter took so long, but is still fairly short. 1. Homework is the kind of torture that should be reserved only for the direst of circumstances 2. I'm a hardcore procrastinator 3. I do this thing where I'll get really super into a certain anime/manga, and have all kinds of inspiration from it (I started this fic in one of my numerous assclass phases) However, once I move on to a different anime/manga, I'll loose the inspiration for other stuff I've got going on. It's not exactly a righter's block, but it's kind of a… specified lack of motivation. So right now for example, I'm absolutely obsessed with fullmetal alchemist. So, while I'm not exactly putting the story on hiatus, since I'll still be working on it intermittently, it'll probably be a while until you get another chapter. But, to tide you over, I present the 5** **th** **chapter of secrets. Also, in other exciting news, I have a kinda-editor! If you're nosey, and have been looking around the reviews, then you probably know her as TinyNerd. She's not actually on the website, but she is my best friend. She posted those reviews without knowing it was my story, after I had introduced her to the world of fanfic. A few weeks latter, I told her it was my story and, after yelling at me a little, she asked if she could edit my future stories. Sadly, she has decided not to help with this one because I have "Done unspeakable things to the best character in all of anime, and the fabulous tiny nerd will have no part in it!" (Her words, not mine) so this story will probably be pretty shitty compared to my future ones but it is my first fanfic so that's to be expected. Anyways, enough of my ranting. On to the Reviews!**

 **RageOfPheonix: Voila! Update!**

 **AngeliqueSora: I'm glad you liked the father scene. It was pretty hard to wright, and if I do choose to go all the way it'll most definitely be amateurish. I'm a little nervous about it anyways, especially since I started this with no intention of adding a smut scene. But know that if I do put one in, it's mostly 'cause of your influence.**

 **Thefluffyfish: I'M SORRY, PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! You're actually kind of scary. It's alright though, I get where you're coming from. Just please don't kill me.**

 **MidnightRide129: Thanks** **J**

 **CheshireKitKat: Thank you**

 **Ayokaya: I'm glad you liked it**

 **Yinyang555: Awww, thank you!**

 **SilverSapphire34523:** **J**

 **Mya: Here ya go then.**

 **Kris Senju: It took me forever to figure out that you were responding to people's reviews. I was looking at them like "huh?" then I realized and felt like an idiot for not getting it sooner.**

 **Chapter 5**

"Hey Karma, you okay?"

Karma glanced up from where he was hammering together some wood for the new daycare. They only had two days left before the old man came back and they were all working hard to put together some finishing touches.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Karma replied, shooting Nagisa a confused glance. The blunette frowned a little.

"I don't know, you've just been acting really strange these past two weeks."

Karma frowned. Had he really? "Like, weird how?" He asked. Nagisa tilted his head a little in thought.

"I don't know. You've just seemed distracted I guess." Karma nodded.

"Yeah, I guess I have been a bit distracted. I've got this new plan to finally kill of he octopus." The redhead explained, grinning manically. He was bluffing of course. He was often distracted when his father came home. The only difference this time was that someone had actually noticed. Luckily, his father was scheduled to leave for America the day of midterms, so he should be back to normal soon.

Nagisa nodded, seeming to buy the excuse. "Oh, of course. Well, I need to go help Isogai and Kayano with some stuff on the other side of the building" he said, already turning to head in that direction. Karma nodded absentmindedly as he felt a buzz in his pocket.

As soon as his friend had rounded the corner, Karma pulled out his phone, quickly typing in the passcode and reading the text he had just received from Gakushuu,

 _We still on for tonight?_

Karma smiled to himself. He and Gakushuu had a bi-weekly date night schedule going, and it was rare for either of them to cancel. But with midterms just around the corner it was fairly touch-and-go at the moment. Especially with Karma's dad still in town. Still though, Karma really didn't want to cancel. He wasn't even technically allowed to study, and he could easily sneak in through his window to avoid his dad. So, smiling for what felt like the first time in weeks, Karma texted back.

 _Wouldn't miss it for the world._

 **Insert beautiful line break here**

"I'm worried about Karma," Nagisa said once he met up with Isogai and Kayano, "He's been acting really distant lately. I think something might be wrong." Isogai frowned,

"Really? I haven't noticed anything different about him," he replied, trying to quell his friend's worries.

"Well," Kayano interjected, "If anyone were to notice something off about Karma it would be Nagisa. He knows Karma better than anyone else in the class." Isogai nodded thoughtfully.

"Yeah, I guess so" he said, "but, even assuming there is something wrong, I highly doubt Karma would just up and tell us." The three quieted down after that trying to think of some kind of solution for their current dilemma. Suddenly Kyano's eyes brightened in realization.

"I've got it!" she cried, drawing the attention of the two boys. "we're assassins aren't we?" The two frowned.

"What are you getting at Kyano?" Nagisa asked, leaning forward a little in anticipation. Kayano sighed like it was obvious.

"Well, why don't we just use that assassin-y stealth Karasuma's been teaching us and follow him after school?" Isogai nodded thoughtfully.

"Yeah. I mean, it's not like we're allowed to study for midterms or anything. And it'll provide some good practice." Nagisa nodded as well.

"So it's decided then. We'll follow him after school, see where he goes and maybe we can figure out what's wrong," the bluenet paused for a moment before adding, "and we keep this between the three of us. Unless we find something really wrong. We don't want anyone slipping up and telling Karma."

After confirming their plan, the three friends went their separate ways, trying to get their respective jobs done early so they could follow their favorite sociopath.

Nagisa smiled a little as he settled down next to a few of his classmates for story time. _'Finaly_ ,' he thought, ' _we'll know what it is that Karma's keeping from us.'_

 **I really should learn how to do line breaks**

Nagisa frowned a little as he and the others tailed Karma. They had been walking for about ten minutes, but they still couldn't figure out where Karma was heading. He clearly wasn't heading home, as Nagisa remembered him mentioning that his house has just North of the school. But Karma seemed to be heading downtown, which was South of the school.

"Do you have any idea what he's doing?" Isogai muttered to his companions, keeping an eye on Karma as he turned a corner. Nagisa and Kyano both shook their heads.

"I think Nagisa was right though," Kyano said thoughtfully, "He does seem distracted by something."

"I guess," Isogai sighed, "I just wish Karma would talk to us about these things. That way we wouldn't have to resort to tailing him just to get answers." Kyano made a sound of agreement, but Nagisa remained silent, having been distracted by the sight of someone else he recognized.

"Is that Asano?" Nagisa asked in surprise. The other two turned to look and, sure enough there was the number one student in the school. He was standing at the intersection ahead of them, still in his school uniform, ramrod straight. He was clearly waiting for someone. ' _Maybe… nah, that can't be it.'_ Nagisa dismissed his thought before he even finished it. Karma and Asano hated each other after all, why on earth would they be meeting here?

Nagisa watched as Asano glanced around, before spotting Karma making his way through the crowded street. "Oh dear," Kyano said, watching as Asano started making his way towards the redhead, who had quickened his pace after noticing the other teen.

"I hope they don't start fighting." Isogai said, concerned for his classmate. But, as he soon found out, there was no need to worry. The two boys met in the middle of the street and exchanged a few words before turning to make their way back towards the intersection. Their three stalkers exchanged startled glances before hurrying after them, trying not to loose them in the thickening crowd.

"We should try to get closer," Kyano suggested, pushing more aggressively through the tide of people.

"I've never really interacted with kids like that before," they heard Karma say as they drew closer, "It's actually pretty fun most of the time, even if they are pretty loud."

 _'_ _Is he… telling him about his day?'_ Nagisa listened in shock as the two smartest kids in his school walked in companionship, talking amiably. This was nothing like how they were at school.

"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. Though, I am sad that you're not allowed to study for midterms. I was hopping for a little competition this time, especially considering how finals went." Asano replied, sticking his hands in his pockets. Karma grumbled a little

"I thought I had asked you not to talk about that." Asano just smirked at the assassin and said nothing.

"This is so weird," Kyano said, incredibly confused by this whole situation. Nagisa sighed deeply.

"You can say that again."

 **This is actually getting kind of sad**

"You're paying for dinner tonight," Karma said, slightly irritated. Gakushuu rolled his eyes.

"Fine. But only because you cooked for me over the weekend."

"Wow. I feel the love Gakushuu. I really do."

"You're welcome. Now hurry up. I hear there are gonna be fireworks in the park tonight."

"What's the occasion?" Gakushuu shrugged in response before taking hold of Karma's hand and rushing forward, forcing the redhead to run as well.

"I swear Shuu, you can be such a child," Karma said, fondness creeping into his tone despite himself. Gakushuu just smiled back at his boyfriend as he dragged him through the thickening crowd.

 **Lalalalalalalalalalalalaaaaaaa**

"Wait!" Nagisa glanced back in annoyance as Kyano grabbed his wrist.

"What are you doing? They're getting away," he growled in irritation. Isogai shook his head.

"If we start running after them, they're sure to notice us. It's best if we just let them go for now," he pointed out. Nagisa frowned, still unconvinced. Kyano sighed. That boy was nothing if not determined.

"We can talk to him tomorrow to find out more. Alright?" She asked hopefully. Nagisa hesitated a moment before nodding, albeit reluctanty.

"Fine. But we're talking to him tomorrow. It's time to find out what's really going on here."

 **Hmmmm… Not much to say here. Honestly, I'm feelin' pretty lukewarm about this whole chapter. I didn't get much time to edit so if you find an error, don't hesitate to let me know. Like I said before, I'm in something of a FMA craze right now, and there's an idea that's been floating around in my skull for a while, so I'll probably be righting a fic for that fandom pretty soon. As always, reviews are awesome, constructive criticism is always welcome, and flames will be used to burn down the flamer's house. Because I know where you live. I know where you ALL live. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! But I love you guys, so it's ok.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys. I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to update. I've been working on a lot of original works lately, and me drama teacher recently asked me to write a script based on a random idea I had, so I don't predict that updates are going to start happening any faster. Anyhow, i hope you enjoy my newest addition to this train wreck.**

Chapter 6

Nagisa yawned as he made his way to the preschool. He hadn't gotten a whole lot of rest last night. When he had gotten home after tailing Karma, he had trouble falling asleep. His mind just wouldn't shut up. He kept wondering just what he had witnessed. The Karma he knew would never associate with Asano Gakushuu. At least, not in a way that didn't involve tangible malice or animosity.

 _'_ _well,_ _'_ he thought to himself, _'_ _at least now we know something is going on. We might finally get Karma to open up a little. He_ _'_ _s always been a little distant from the rest of the class_ _…_ _and I hardly know anything about what he normally does after school. Although, if what we saw last night was any indication it_ _'_ _s not what we would expect._ _'_

Nagisa shook himself out of his revere. Worrying about everything that he had seen would do him no good. They would corner Karma at lunch. That way, he wouldn't be able to just go home if it suited him. They would be getting answers, one way or another. The real question, he supposed, would be wether or not those answers would be the truth.

 **And I still don** **'** **t know how to do line breaks. It** **'** **s my own fault really** **…**

Nagisa was distracted all morning. Even helping tutor Sakura wasn't enough to take his mind off Karma. So, by the time he met up with the others for lunch, he was even more anxious than he was that morning.

Taking a deep breath, Nagisa approached Karma, who had made himself comfortable, leaning against the trunk of a tree. He didn't really like the idea of confronting Karma in front of the whole class, but he knew that the red head would find it much harder to escape if he was surrounded.

"Karma, we need to talk." The class fell silent, having picked up on Nagisa's serious tone, and Nagisa could feel their eyes on his back. Karma however, seemed unconcerned, taking his sweet time in acknowledging the other boy's presence.

"What about?" he asked, sipping contentedly at his strawberry milk.

"We saw you." Karma raised an eyebrow at Nagisa's confession.

"Congratulations. I can see you're putting all that training to good use. And what exactly was it that you saw me doing?"

Nagisa sighed. Of course Karma was going to make this difficult.

"We saw you last night. With Asano."

Sounds of confusion came from the rest of the class, but Nagisa didn't take his eyes off of Karma. He watched nervously, hoping against hope that Karma's reaction would prove him wrong. Karma's eyes widened with realization and he finally put down his drink.

Nagisa could practically see the gears in Karma's head turning as he tried to think of some kind of excuse. Clearly, he couldn't come up with one good enough to placate his now curious classmates.

Sighing, Karma slowly pulled himself to his feet, facing everyone else's confused stares. Not giving Karma the time to wriggle his way out of the situaton, Nagisa persisted.

"We were worried about you. You were acting strange yesterday so Kayano, Isogai, and I followed you. Just to make sure you were okay," Nagisa explained in a rush, trying desperately not to anger the redhead. "And you went downtown, and you met up with Asano, and then you went out for dinner I think? And-"

"Yes, I am fully aware of what I did last night. I was there after all," Karma cut in.

"So you're not denying it?" Terasaka demanded incredulously.

"Of course not. There would be no point in trying to deny something when I've clearly been caught in the act. Not that I've done anything wrong," Karma replied with surprising calm, considering the murderous glare Terasaka had turned his way.

"Not done anything wrong?" Terasaka shouted, pushing his way to the front of the small crowd. "You're conspiring with the enemy! The ruler of class A! How dare you?"

Karma's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Gakushuu isn't an enemy you half-witted baboon. We've known each other since we were five years old, and he knows more about me than all of you combined. So what gives you the right to judge me for wanting to spend time with someone I care about?" Karma bit back, growing angrier with each word.

Nagisa was taken aback. He didn't know what he had been expecting when he had confronted Karma, but he certainly wasn't prepared for this sudden outburst.

"We're sorry Karma. We had no idea," Okuda offered, looking a little scared of incurring the redhead's wrath. But the fear was unnecessary, as Karma appeared to be calming down.

"It's fine Okuda. You didn't know because I didn't want you to," Karma soothed.

"But why not?" Nakamura asked, sounding a little put out. Karma just looked at her like she was being unbearably slow.

"And what would any of you have done in my position?" Karma asked, daring the others to interupt, "Ah yes, by the way, you know the son of the guy who deliberately placed us in an unhealthy environment? Yeah, the one who's always looked down on us, and that we all hate? Just thought you should know, he's my boyfriend. Hope this doesn't make things weird!" The class fell into shocked silence.

"Wait…" Kayano started, her voice thick with confusion, "Asano's your _boyfriend?_ _"_ Karma glared at her.

"Yes. Do you have a problem with that?" Kayano shook her head hurriedly, not wanting to anger Karma any further.

A heavy silence fell, everyone unsure of what to do from here. Karma bit his lip, clearly debating with himself. Finally, after an uncomfortably long pause, he spoke.

"Look. I know that you might not like it. But this is my decision to make, and I will not be taking bullshit from the people who don't even know half the story. I can't promise that things are going to change much now that you know, but for what it's worth, I can ask Gakushuu to lay off you a little during assemblies."

"We don't need help from someone who has been fraternizing with the enemy!" cried Terasaka, getting over his shock enough to become enraged.

Karma sighed. "It was just an offer. You don't have to accept my help, but that does not mean you can make me change the people I choose to spend my time with.

"But Karma," Nagisa said, finally speaking up, "Asano's a total jerk. Why would you want to date someone like him?" Karma turned his glare on the blue-haired assassin, and Nagisa found himself flinching away involuntarily.

"Well at least Gakushuu respects my decisions. Unlike the people who seem to consider themselves better human beings. Well, news flash kiddos, you're not really earning any points with me right now. So why don't you just back off for a few seconds, and maybe consider the fact that I know a little bit more about my own life than you lot." Karma said, raising his voice for the first time.

Turning on his heel, Karma marched back towards the day care, leaving the others to stare in stunned confusion at his retreating back.

"Well," Isogai said, breaking the silence that had fallen over the class, "I guess we got answers." There was a collective sigh before the students started to disperse. Still, even as the others returned to whatever job they had to do, Nagisa refused to move a muscle. Finally, he and Kyano were the only two left, and, with one last sympathetic look, the green-haired girl took off as well, leaving Nagisa alone with his thoughts.

He had gotten his answers, just like he wanted, but even so, something still felt wrong. The whole reason Nagisa had looked into Karma in the first place was because the red-head had seemed to be acting odd. However, it appeared that Karma's relationship with Asano wasn't something new, nor did seem like the two were having any issues. So why did it still seem like Karma was hiding something?

Maybe it wasn't his place to pry, but Nagisa just couldn't shake the feeling that there was still something that Karma wasn't saying. And no matter how angry Karma was at Nagisa, they were still friends, so Nagisa had no intention of letting the redhead deal with anything on his own.

Finally, Nagisa wandered off in search of Sakura, a determined glint in his eye. He wasn't sure how, but he was going to figure out what was really happening to Karma.

 **I'm honestly not entirely sure how I feel about this chapter. I really hated it at first, but I made a couple of changes so it's slightly better now. Still not my favourite though. Anyhow, quick shout out to my amazing editor and friend TinyNerd, who helped point out a bunch of flaws, and has generally made this whole fic better. Don't know what I'd do without her! (She's an amazing writer, and she has a blog with a bunch of her own original works. If you like dark short stories, then you should definitely check it out! Here's the link:** .com **) Anyhow, enough of my rambling. Have a great day/night everyone!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, so I know I haven't updated in literally forever, though to be fair, I am an actual mess. I think you should know that I uploaded this same story onto archive of our own and I'm actually one chapter ahead of where I am in this version. (they're the exact same story I just prefer using ao3 so I kinda forgot about ) Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

Karma kept his eyes trained on the floor, lost in his own thoughts as he walked through the sterile halls of the hospital. He had no idea how he was going to pick up the pieces of this particular mess.

He knew that he would need to call Gakushuu, preferably soon. But he was not looking forward to that conversation. He had no idea what kind of changes this would cause in his relationship with Gakushuu, not to mention his already strenuous camaraderie with the rest of class 3-E.

Finally, Karma reached the door to room 317. He gently pushed the door open, walking into the room. It was silent, as it always was, save the steady beep of the heart rate monitor. Dropping his school bag near the door, Karma settled into the familiar, uncomfortable chair that sat next to the bed.

The woman lying on the bed may have been beautiful once. You could still see the laugh lines around her eyes, proving that her life had been full of colour. But those days were long gone. Ever since that fateful night, when the roads had been a little too slippery, and the sky had been a little too dark.

If ghosts did exist, Karma noted, they would probably look something like this. Frail and thin, so deprived of sun that she could easily be a part of the hospital bed. Even her hair, which had once been a brilliant crimson, was faded and dull. Her eyes were shut, as they had been for eleven years. Karma couldn't even remember what colour they were.

"Hey mom," Karma paused, trying to clear the lump in his throat, "It's been a while. School has been really busy, plus the whole Koro-sensei thing, ya know?"

Karma felt his shoulders start to relax as he talked. He didn't know for sure if his mother could hear him, although people often said that she could. If that were true then Karma should probably be arrested for revealing top secret information. But Karma honestly couldn't give less of a shit when it came to what the government wanted, not least when it came to his mother.

"Gakushuu and I have been doing well. I stayed at his house over the weekend. We watched movies and I made pancakes. Just the way you always made them."

Karma didn't have a lot of memories of his mother. He remembers how she would make him pancakes on the weekends, and he would pretend to help by following her around the kitchen. It was probably a nuisance, but she never once asked him to stop. He remembers how she taught him to braid hair. He had wanted to grow his out, so that he looked more like her. But his dad always made him cut it. And he remembers when they would go to the park. The same park where he first met Gakushuu. And he would talk about how amazing Gakushuu was, and how one day they would get married and take over the world. His dad always scolded him, talking about how he couldn't marry another boy. But his mom would just smile and ask if he would invite her to the wedding.

There was another memory in there too. A memory of wanting to play in the snow just a little longer. A memory of an icy street and a darkening sky. A memory of sudden motion and the squealing of tires as they lost their grip on the frosted pavement. And the memory of clambering out of the wreckage, crying for his mom, who wouldn't respond. Calling the ambulance, the screams of sirens, all drowned out because _why isn't mommy waking up?_

And she didn't wake up. The doctors said she probably never would. It had taken Karma nearly six months before he could bring himself to visit her in the hospital. How could he? If he hadn't begged to stay at the park another hour, then it wouldn't have been so dark out. His mom wouldn't have crashed the car. It was all his fault. And his father and him both knew it.

"It's almost midterms. I completely bombed finals last term, so I've been studying almost nonstop since then. We're not allowed to study right now though, since a few students injured an old man. He's in this very hospital actually. Only a few floors up. Funny how these things work out"

His dad never came to visit, at least, not that Karma knew of. He paid the medical bills, but Karma had a sneaking suspicion that it was only because his mom was the only leverage his dad had against him. Like it or not, Mr Akabane was smart. (Karma would prove that he was smarter, one day.) And he had taken every precaution to make sure that his less savory behaviors remained known to only him and his son. If he ever found out that Gakushuu knew… Karma didn't even want to think about it.

"We've been spending most of our time at this daycare that the man works at. It's pretty torn up, so we've been helping to rebuild. We only have another week and a half to finish it up. Midterms, so I don't think I'll be able to see Gakushuu for a little while. You know how he gets with these things."

Karma smiled bitterly, leaning back in the hard chair. "But I doubt you really care about my boyfriends study habits," Karma forced out a chuckle. He didn't know who he was trying to fool. His mom certainly isn't benefiting from his forced amusement. Maybe it was himself he was trying so desperately to convince. "You probably want to know how dad is doing."

Karma glanced down at his hands, clenched together on his lap. "He got back from Germany on Friday. He's been here for almost a week, so he'll probably leave tonight or tomorrow."

Karma really didn't want to go home tonight. But he also knew that Gakushuu would be studying all night, and Mr. Asano would be pissed if Karma showed up. There was no way Karma would put Gakushuu in a position where he could piss off his father.

Karma checked his phone. Visiting hours were almost over.

"We've been doing a lot of free running in class lately. I think that's what got some kids in trouble. They were using it outside of class. Don't worry; I've been staying out of trouble. Well, staying out of trouble as much as usual anyhow."

Karma didn't even try to fake laugh this time. He was worn out. This whole week was just one mess after another, and sitting here, staring down at his comatose mother was not nearly as therapeutic as he had been hoping.

"Sorry if I'm not good company," why was he apologizing to the woman in a coma? "It's been a long week. I hope things start to get better soon."

He paused, as though waiting for some response. Maybe words of encouragement, maybe advice. Whatever he was waiting for, it never came. And Karma spent the next few minutes sitting in solemn silence.

Eventually a nurse walked in to tell him that he had to leave. He didn't put up any kind of fight, just thanked the haggard looking man and walked back through the too-bright halls.

Stepping out into the fresh air of the hospital parking lot, Karma stuffed his hands into the pockets of his blazer, trying to conserve some body heat. The air had chilled while he was inside, and he was starting to regret staying for so long.

The only thing he could hope for now was that his father was gone or asleep by the time he got home.

 **Have a wonderful day everyone!**


End file.
